BAMMA 14’s Romario da Silva believes he’s better than Paul Daley at every turn

With 35 pro fights already under his belt, one would expect this MMA thing to be old hat for Romario da Silva. But the way he looks at it, it’s the story of two careers.

Da Silva (23-11-1) on Saturday meets UFC, Strikeforce and Bellator veteran Paul Daley (33-13-2) at BAMMA 14, which takes place at LG Arena in Birmingham, England. The main card will air in the U.S. on AXS TV.

Da Silva, from Brazil, recently told MMAjunkie that the first half of his pro career was fought under less than ideal circumstances from a preparation standpoint on his part.

“To be honest, not long ago I finally started taking my professional career seriously,” da Silva said. “I didn’t train properly as an athlete before that. I used to come in unprepared for my fights. Not to put down any of the athletes who’ve defeated me in the past, but these days I’m very different. Now I’m 100 percent ready when I fight. And my losses did help me a lot regarding experience and figuring out what I needed to improve. It was around 2007 that I became truly motivated into behaving as a professional athlete.”

That motivation now has him training in South Florida with the Blackzilians team, one of the most renowned camps in the world. He splits his time between there and his home city of Fortaleza, in Brazil, and said he even mixes in some trips to Finney’s MMA in Missouri.

On Saturday, da Silva has to venture into hostile territory against Daley in the Brit’s home country of England. He knows that might stack the deck against him in some eyes – but not in his.

“I think Paul Daley is one of the great names in MMA around the world,” he said. “Everyone knows his potential. He’s a great athlete. To be sincere, I’m not too focused on his striking or ground game. I’m concerned with what I can do. I know I can trade on the feet with him. I know I can grapple with him. I don’t underestimate him, but I do believe my abilities exceed his. I expect to put on a great fight and get the win.”

And if that happens, he’ll be attributing a large part of that to what he’s able to do getting ready for his fights – especially with the team in Florida.

“It’s incredible, all the talent I get to train with at the Blackzilians team,” da Silva said. “I am truly thankful for the high level of talent that helped me get ready for this fight. I’ve been working with Danillo Villefort, Jorge Santiago, Gesias Cavalcante, Luiz Firmino, Guto Inocente, Diego Peclat, Rashad Evans, Thiago Silva, Henri Hooft, Cosmo Alexandre – it’s too many too count. I am thankful I get to gain more experience and learn so much when working with those guys.”

Against Daley, the 33-year-old, whose “Junior Killer” nickname was given to him years ago in Fortaleza, da Silva said he won’t be focused on being in Daley’s home country.

Instead, he’ll be hoping to give the fans a great show, and maybe turn some of them into fans of his if he can get out of England with a victory. With 15 stoppages in his 23 career wins, that’s what he’s hoping for.

“I know he’s fighting at home and I’ll be in a hostile climate, but I’m focused and I expect to put on a great show,” he said. “I don’t just fight for myself. I also fight for all the fans in attendance.”

For more on BAMMA 14, check out the MMA Rumors section of the site.